The invention relates to a brazed heat exchanger having at least one manifold, to which an additional part is fastened, in particular for use in the type of connection shown according to the subject matter of the commonly assigned earlier patent application WO 2004/065884. The invention also relates to a method for mounting a heat exchanger in a motor vehicle and to a motor vehicle so equipped.
In the aforementioned commonly assigned earlier patent application there is disclosed a brazed heat exchanger which is formed, in a preferred embodiment, as a condenser of an air-conditioning system for a motor vehicle. It includes at least one refrigerant connector for connection to a refrigerant circuit and holders or brackets for the mounting of the condenser. The connector and the holders are additional parts which are fastened to at least one manifold of the condenser by brazing. Before the brazing process, all the parts are positioned and fixed, in order that they retain their predetermined position during the brazing process. Various solutions for fixing the parts are proposed in the earlier application, including a form locking between the additional parts and the manifold, or slots in the manifold in which fixing elements fastened to the additional part engage. Although the brazing gaps produced as a result between the manifold and the additional parts are closed during the brazing, which preferably takes place by the so-called Nocolok process, there is the risk that leaks or the formation of weak points may occur due to an inhomogeneous microstructure of the soldered joint. Since condensers for motor vehicles are subjected to particularly strong vibrational stress, the connection in particular between the holder and the manifold should be formed with adequate long-term strength and stability.